This easy homemade dog food recipe is made in your Crockpot with lean ground chicken, rice, and vegetables for a protein-rich meal your dog will love. It is easy to customize, portion, and freeze for later.
"I fed Eukanuba for a while but can't find it anymore here in Alaska ?. Started with Taste of the Wild, and my Poms were fine, but now their bellies are bloated up and they are hungry all the time. So I started this recipe. The bloating is gone and the constant complaining has stopped....."★★★★★-Dawn
🔍 Quick Look: Crockpot Homemade Dog Food Recipe with Ground Chicken
⏱️ Prep Time: 5 minutes
🕒 Cook Time: 4 hours (High) or 6 hours (Low)
👥 Servings: About 14 cups
🐶 Main Ingredients: Lean ground chicken, white rice, carrots, peas, green beans, butternut squash, kidney beans
🚫 No Onion or Garlic: This recipe is made without onions, garlic, or seasonings.
🔄 Easy to Customize: Swap the meat, vegetables, and beans with other dog-friendly ingredients.
❄️ Freezer Friendly: Yes
⭐ Difficulty: Easy
Jump to:
- 🔍 Quick Look: Crockpot Homemade Dog Food Recipe with Ground Chicken
- A note to the reader
- Watch video how to make homemade dog food
- What do you put in homemade dog food?
- Foods dogs should never eat
- How to make slow cooker dog food
- Do dogs need supplements on a homemade diet?
- Storage and serving tips
- How much homemade dog food should you feed your dog?
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
A note to the reader
When my dog Goliath developed food allergies, I felt like I had tried every dog food on the market. Some helped for a while, but the expensive bags kept adding up. Finally, I decided to start making his food myself. This easy crockpot dog food recipe has become our go-to.
It's simple to make, freezer friendly, and he loves it. He wakes me up first thing in the morning begging for his food. The little bugger jumps on my chest, then takes his little paw to hit me in the head to wake up.
He will not let me roll over to ignore him. He wants his breakfast. I won't go back to processed store-bought food again! I also have a homemade Doggy Treat Recipe here. I hope your dog loves it as much as mine! Enjoy! Xoxo -Katie.
Every dog has different nutritional needs. Before feeding homemade meals long term, talk with your veterinarian or a board-certified veterinary nutritionist to be sure the recipe meets your dog's specific requirements.
Watch video how to make homemade dog food
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What do you put in homemade dog food?
These are the ingredients I put in my homemade dog food:
- ground chicken- It is important to use real lean meat.
- kidney beans- Look for reduced or no sodium. Not all dogs are created equal. If your dog's stomach seems sensitive to this recipe or really gassy, I would omit the beans.
- carrots- Fresh or frozen
- butternut squash- Fresh or frozen.
- peas- Use fresh, frozen, or canned. Use no sodium. If your dog
- green beans- Look for reduced or no sodium if canned. Frozen or fresh are great.
- white rice- White rice is easier to digest for dogs with sensitive stomachs. Brown rice can be harder to digest for some dogs.
*Note: Homemade dog food needs to be plain- no butter, onions, garlic, or seasonings.
What other foods can you use in homemade dog food?
One of the things I love most about this recipe is how easy it is to customize. Feel free to swap the meat, vegetables, or beans based on what you have on hand or what works best for your dog.
When choosing meat, ALWAYS USE LEAN PROTEIN such as ground chicken, turkey, bison, or lean beef. Remove any skin or avoid fatty cuts as too much fat can upset your dog's stomach or trigger pancreatitis.
| Ingredient | Good Substitutions |
|---|
| Ground chicken | Lean turkey, lean beef, bison |
| Butternut squash | Pumpkin, sweet potato |
| Kidney beans | Pinto beans, lentils (if tolerated) |
| White rice | Brown rice (if tolerated) |
| Vegetables | Carrots, peas, green beans, spinach |
You can also add
- Apples or apple sauce for a variety in flavor.
- Chicken livers are really good for your dog, but also very rich. Add in small amounts.
- Egg shells are also very good for dogs. This adds in calcium. Most dogs won't eat the shells unless they are really broken up or crushed. You can crush the shells in a coffee grinder, food processor, or with a mortar and pestle.
- Salmon, salmon oil, and fish oil also helps with skin allergies and inflammation.
Foods dogs should never eat
Some everyday foods can be toxic to dogs. Never add these ingredients to homemade dog food, and keep them out of your dog's reach.
- onions
- garlic
- grapes
- raisins
- avocado
- chocolate
- macadamia nuts
- xylitol
- cooked bones
How to make slow cooker dog food
Follow these steps to make:
- Add ground chicken, butternut squash, kidney beans, peas, green beans, carrots, and uncooked white rice, with water to a crock pot.
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours, stirring occasionally.
- Ration food according to dog size. Feed dog daily portion.
Do dogs need supplements on a homemade diet?
Give your dog supplements!
My veterinarian felt this recipe worked well for my dog, however, to assure me that my dog was getting all the proper vitamins that my dog might need, he suggested I give my dog 
VETRISCIENCE Canine Plus MultiVitamin for Dogs.
He would suggest this supplement for my dog if he was eating store bought food as well. You can find cheaper supplements if you do some research. This is just the brand we use.
Because every dog's nutritional needs are different. Check with your veterinarian before switching your dog to a homemade diet.
My dog is also older. He is at the age where he needs joint supplements. He is a picky eater and has snubbed his nose at several different joint supplements that I have tried to offer him.
However, he LOVES Ark Naturals Sea Mobility Joint Rescue Chews, Beef, Increase Flexibility, Mobility and Joint Comfort, Vet Recommended for All Dog Breeds, 500 mg Glucosamine, 9 oz. Bag . I buy the beef flavor. It is all natural with great ingredients. He thinks he is eating a treat when I give him his little square chew!
Storage and serving tips
You can refrigerate the dog food up to 4 days and freeze the dog food up to 3 months.
When I make this homemade crockpot dog food, I portion it out in baggies. Next, I store the bags of food in the freezer.
I pull a bag of food out the night before to defrost the food for the next morning. I add a little water to mix in so he slows down eating it. My dog loves it and will inhale his food.
I found adding the water in slows him down just a bit. I feed him half a bag in the morning and half at night.
How much homemade dog food should you feed your dog?
You can calculate how much to feed your dog here. It is a great resource to tell you how many calories your dog needs based on it's size.
The calories in the recipe box are an estimate based on lean chicken.
If you are making your homemade dog food for the first time, introduce the new food a little at a time. You don't want your dog to get sick from a fast transition.
You may want to start off with half of the homemade food and half of the regular food for a couple of days.
Consult your veterinarian on how to do that best.
When you make this homemade dog food, please tell me what you think in the comment section! It would mean the world to me to hear back. My readers will appreciate the information also.
Also post your picture of your dog's food on Instagram or Facebook, and tag @aforkstale with #aforkstale hashtags! I will share with my followers! xoxo!
📖 Recipe
Easy Crockpot Homemade Dog Food Recipe (Ground Chicken)
Ingredients
- 3 pounds lean ground chicken
- 1 cup butternut squash I use frozen, precut
- 15 ounces can kidney beans drained
- 1 cup peas
- 1 cup green beans
- 1 cup carrots sliced or diced
- 1 ½ cup uncooked rice
- 4 cups of water
Instructions
- Add ground chicken, butternut squash, drained can of kidney beans, peas, green beans, sliced carrots, uncooked white rice, and water to a crock pot or slow cooker.3 pounds lean ground chicken, 1 cup butternut squash, 15 ounces can kidney beans, 1 cup peas, 1 cup green beans, 1 cup carrots, 1 ½ cup uncooked rice, 4 cups of water
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours, stirring occasionally.
Rhonda Luthi says
My Maltipoo has been eating this for over a year now. She loves it! I do add some very low sodium bone broth for flavoring.
bill says
we have been making this every week since 11/24. The dog, 55 lbs, gets 1 cup in the morning and 1 cup at night, supplemented with dry dog food. She really likes it, and we saw a big difference in her coat
JB says
Thank you for posting. I'm excited to give this a try today. I have two Havanese pups. One has allergies and one has a really weak stomach, so store bought is just not working out well.
Nan says
Shortbread, who would never eat her dry food, loves this fresh option! I use it to replace about a third of her dry food and mix the two together. Now Shortbread licks her bowl clean every time. I have made the recipe four times now, and she gets so excited when she sees me put everything in the slow cooker. One recipe lasts us about 3 weeks, and I freeze daily portions to thaw out as needed. Thank you for posting this recipe, and thanks also to those who have posted their modifications.
Candace says
I have been using this exact recipe for over a year for my 65 ound basset hound, Teddy. He was a very finicky eater and would simply turn away from his bowl even though I put a generous portion of cheese on top his wet food. Now he eats his breakfast and dinner heartily and gets excited when he sees me putting the frozen ingredients into the crockpot to cook it. The best suggestion is to bag it and freeze it. I give him 1 cup in the morning and 1 cup for dinner. His coat shines and he gets many compliments about how beautiful his fur is.